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Cross-System Collaboration

The LEAD Center fosters cross-system collaboration by partnering with federal agency leaders, state and local agency policymakers, and practitioners and subject matter experts to build a progressive vision to improve the employment outcomes and economic advancement of youth and adults with disabilities. No single organization or resource is able to respond effectively to the diverse needs of each individual with a disability, and others who face multiple barriers to employment. The LEAD Center facilitates and highlights promising practices in resource coordination across systems by proactively engaging with agencies and organizations to spur systems change that translates into significant improvements in the employment and economic advancement of individuals with disabilities.

Mathematica Policy Research Center for Studying Disability Policy, July 2011 - This presentation, given at the 6th National Medicaid Conference, discusses the three major holes in healthcare financing for people with disabilities.

U.S. Government Accountability Office - July 2010 - This report examines the many barriers that still exist 20 years after the ADA’s passage that may prevent people with disabilities from staying connected or returning to employment.

ODEP, in collaboration with the CMS Disability & Elderly Public Health Group will host two upcoming educational webinars for state policy-makers and disability policy stakeholders to discuss recent Federal policy guidance issued by CMS.

ODEP, in collaboration with the CMS Disability & Elderly Public Health Group will host two upcoming educational webinars for state policy-makers and disability policy stakeholders to discuss recent Federal policy guidance issued by CMS.

Following 29 other states and the District of Columbia, Alaskan Governor Bill Walker has announced that the state will be accepting additional federal funds to expand Medicaid, which will bring $146 million to the state in its first year and provi

Since the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) final rule on Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) took effect in the beginning of 2014, each state has had to produce a transition plan outlining a schedule and strategy for bringing

Over the past several months, the National Quality Forum (NQF) has convened a stakeholder committee to develop recommendations to improve quality measurement for Medicaid Home and CommunityBased Services (HCBS).

During a public listening session hosted by the National Council on Disability (NCD) earlier this month, disability rights advocates, including representatives from the Disability Rights Center of Kansas, spoke on concerns about the capacity of Ka

In the wake of national advocacy to raise minimum wage to $15 per hour across all labor sectors, home health workers who provide care for seniors and people with disabilities, as well as the clients they serve, have been at the forefront of low-pa

The entire month of October, we will join countless nonprofits, organizations, all levels of government, and individuals with disabilities, their family and friends, as well as disability advocates raising awareness about disability employment...

On July 21, U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Tom Perez, joined by Delaware Governor Jack Markell and South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard, sent a letter to governors of every state highlighting their commitment to advancing the Employment First...

In LEAD Center's newest blog, Alec Frazier, Director, Autistic Reality, discusses disability employment, shares his employment journey as an individual with autism, and highlights the importance of networking. He also provides some of his best...

In LEAD Center's new blog, Marlene Ulisky, Financial Empowerment & Disability Benefits Manager at National Disability Institute, talks about how the military engrains many skills that are transferable to civilian jobs and how hiring a veteran...

I’m In To Hire is an initiative founded by Best Buddies International that aims to create a more inclusive workplace by promoting the business benefits of hiring those with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).

As we celebrate National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM), it is important that we take account of the incredible progress that has been made in the fight to ensure all people, including people with disabilities, have access to gainful...

Mathematica Policy Research Center for Studying Disability Policy, July 2011 - This presentation, given at the 6th National Medicaid Conference, discusses the three major holes in healthcare financing for people with disabilities.

U.S. Government Accountability Office - July 2010 - This report examines the many barriers that still exist 20 years after the ADA’s passage that may prevent people with disabilities from staying connected or returning to employment.

ODEP, in collaboration with the CMS Disability & Elderly Public Health Group will host two upcoming educational webinars for state policy-makers and disability policy stakeholders to discuss recent Federal policy guidance issued by CMS.

ODEP, in collaboration with the CMS Disability & Elderly Public Health Group will host two upcoming educational webinars for state policy-makers and disability policy stakeholders to discuss recent Federal policy guidance issued by CMS.

Following 29 other states and the District of Columbia, Alaskan Governor Bill Walker has announced that the state will be accepting additional federal funds to expand Medicaid, which will bring $146 million to the state in its first year and provi

Since the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) final rule on Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) took effect in the beginning of 2014, each state has had to produce a transition plan outlining a schedule and strategy for bringing

Over the past several months, the National Quality Forum (NQF) has convened a stakeholder committee to develop recommendations to improve quality measurement for Medicaid Home and CommunityBased Services (HCBS).

During a public listening session hosted by the National Council on Disability (NCD) earlier this month, disability rights advocates, including representatives from the Disability Rights Center of Kansas, spoke on concerns about the capacity of Ka

In the wake of national advocacy to raise minimum wage to $15 per hour across all labor sectors, home health workers who provide care for seniors and people with disabilities, as well as the clients they serve, have been at the forefront of low-pa

The entire month of October, we will join countless nonprofits, organizations, all levels of government, and individuals with disabilities, their family and friends, as well as disability advocates raising awareness about disability employment...

On July 21, U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Tom Perez, joined by Delaware Governor Jack Markell and South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard, sent a letter to governors of every state highlighting their commitment to advancing the Employment First...

In LEAD Center's newest blog, Alec Frazier, Director, Autistic Reality, discusses disability employment, shares his employment journey as an individual with autism, and highlights the importance of networking. He also provides some of his best...

In LEAD Center's new blog, Marlene Ulisky, Financial Empowerment & Disability Benefits Manager at National Disability Institute, talks about how the military engrains many skills that are transferable to civilian jobs and how hiring a veteran...

I’m In To Hire is an initiative founded by Best Buddies International that aims to create a more inclusive workplace by promoting the business benefits of hiring those with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).

As we celebrate National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM), it is important that we take account of the incredible progress that has been made in the fight to ensure all people, including people with disabilities, have access to gainful...

NCD commissioned a wide-ranging study in order to gain a better understanding of the intricacies of Medicaid managed care practices and the ways in which these practices can and should affect services for program beneficiaries with disabilities.

Mathematica Policy Research Center for Studying Disability Policy, July 2011 - This presentation, given at the 6th National Medicaid Conference, discusses the three major holes in healthcare financing for people with disabilities.

On June 6, 2016, the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice released a study showing that most people with serious mental illness can improve the quality of their lives if they are given sufficient employment supports in the...

On June 20, 2016, Tennessee’s Bureau of TennCare and the Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, released a memo detailing major changes to the way in which the state will authorize facility-based day services, including employm

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Administration on Community Living (ACL) partnered with the state of Tennessee on May 26th to host a webinar on Tennessee’s State HCBS Transition Plan titled, HCBS Implementation and the...

CMS has recently released a new section of its Settings Requirements Compliance toolkit, titled Frequently Asked Questions on Planned Construction and Person-Centered Planning Requirements. The resource addresses a number of questions that people...

On May 9, 2016, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a new resource document discussing and clarifying the rights available to individuals who request work leave as a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilit

National Core Indicators (NCI), a collaborative effort between the National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disability Services (NASDDDS) and the Human Services Research Institute (HSRI) to evaluate the performance of developmental

Iowa’s Department of Health and Human Services announced on May 9, 2016 that, due to an unclear statement of how money was to be spent in a 2015 health care budget bill, $750,000 initially allocated to increase supported employment has not been sp

On April 13, 2016, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) granted final approval for Tennessee’s Statewide Transition Plan, designed to bring the state into compliance with CMS’ final rules on home and community-based services (HCBS).

On Thursday, October 1, 2015, the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), in partnership with the LEAD Center and Social Dynamics LLC, launched a new website, intended to serve as the go-to resource for

LEAD Center Project Director, Rebecca Salon, presented a session on Knowledge Translation to staff from more than 20 University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDDs) at the 2015 UCEDD Leadership Institute at the University

NCD commissioned a wide-ranging study in order to gain a better understanding of the intricacies of Medicaid managed care practices and the ways in which these practices can and should affect services for program beneficiaries with disabilities.

Mathematica Policy Research Center for Studying Disability Policy, July 2011 - This presentation, given at the 6th National Medicaid Conference, discusses the three major holes in healthcare financing for people with disabilities.

On June 6, 2016, the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice released a study showing that most people with serious mental illness can improve the quality of their lives if they are given sufficient employment supports in the...

On June 20, 2016, Tennessee’s Bureau of TennCare and the Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, released a memo detailing major changes to the way in which the state will authorize facility-based day services, including employm

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Administration on Community Living (ACL) partnered with the state of Tennessee on May 26th to host a webinar on Tennessee’s State HCBS Transition Plan titled, HCBS Implementation and the...

CMS has recently released a new section of its Settings Requirements Compliance toolkit, titled Frequently Asked Questions on Planned Construction and Person-Centered Planning Requirements. The resource addresses a number of questions that people...

On May 9, 2016, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a new resource document discussing and clarifying the rights available to individuals who request work leave as a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilit

National Core Indicators (NCI), a collaborative effort between the National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disability Services (NASDDDS) and the Human Services Research Institute (HSRI) to evaluate the performance of developmental

Iowa’s Department of Health and Human Services announced on May 9, 2016 that, due to an unclear statement of how money was to be spent in a 2015 health care budget bill, $750,000 initially allocated to increase supported employment has not been sp

On April 13, 2016, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) granted final approval for Tennessee’s Statewide Transition Plan, designed to bring the state into compliance with CMS’ final rules on home and community-based services (HCBS).

On Thursday, October 1, 2015, the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), in partnership with the LEAD Center and Social Dynamics LLC, launched a new website, intended to serve as the go-to resource for

LEAD Center Project Director, Rebecca Salon, presented a session on Knowledge Translation to staff from more than 20 University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDDs) at the 2015 UCEDD Leadership Institute at the University

NCD commissioned a wide-ranging study in order to gain a better understanding of the intricacies of Medicaid managed care practices and the ways in which these practices can and should affect services for program beneficiaries with disabilities.

Mathematica Policy Research Center for Studying Disability Policy, July 2011 - This presentation, given at the 6th National Medicaid Conference, discusses the three major holes in healthcare financing for people with disabilities.

On June 6, 2016, the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice released a study showing that most people with serious mental illness can improve the quality of their lives if they are given sufficient employment supports in the...

On June 20, 2016, Tennessee’s Bureau of TennCare and the Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, released a memo detailing major changes to the way in which the state will authorize facility-based day services, including employm

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Administration on Community Living (ACL) partnered with the state of Tennessee on May 26th to host a webinar on Tennessee’s State HCBS Transition Plan titled, HCBS Implementation and the...

CMS has recently released a new section of its Settings Requirements Compliance toolkit, titled Frequently Asked Questions on Planned Construction and Person-Centered Planning Requirements. The resource addresses a number of questions that people...

On May 9, 2016, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a new resource document discussing and clarifying the rights available to individuals who request work leave as a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilit

National Core Indicators (NCI), a collaborative effort between the National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disability Services (NASDDDS) and the Human Services Research Institute (HSRI) to evaluate the performance of developmental

Iowa’s Department of Health and Human Services announced on May 9, 2016 that, due to an unclear statement of how money was to be spent in a 2015 health care budget bill, $750,000 initially allocated to increase supported employment has not been sp

On April 13, 2016, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) granted final approval for Tennessee’s Statewide Transition Plan, designed to bring the state into compliance with CMS’ final rules on home and community-based services (HCBS).

On Thursday, October 1, 2015, the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), in partnership with the LEAD Center and Social Dynamics LLC, launched a new website, intended to serve as the go-to resource for

LEAD Center Project Director, Rebecca Salon, presented a session on Knowledge Translation to staff from more than 20 University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDDs) at the 2015 UCEDD Leadership Institute at the University

The LEAD Center is led by Social Policy Research Associates and National Disability Institute. It is fully funded as the WIOA Policy Development Center by the Office of Disability Employment Policy, U.S. Department of Labor, Contract No. 1605DC-19-F-00341.